Roundabout Way

The other month, I caught a production of Waiting for Godot via the Roundabout Theatre Company.

Since then, I've gotten two cold calls from the Roundabout. They both opened by asking me how I liked their production of Godot. Followed quickly by an aggressive pitch for signing up for more shows at the Roundabout.

Both calls occurred while I was prepping for some serious work conference calls. Both calls ended abruptly with me muttering, "Sorry..." and hanging up.

I get it. Trying to get butts into empty theater seats. Hard times all around, hats in hands.

But this cold call technique is a tactic that Roundabout's employed for years. I remember them bugging me before. Does this really work? Do people really stay on the line and buy expensive season passes for shows they may not want to see?